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Iran

The latest news, analysis and opinion on Iran. In-depth analysis, industry insights and expert opinion.

Capital

Tehran

Head of State

Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei

Head of Government

President Masoud Pezeshkian

Cannes Film Festival

‘It Was Just An Accident’ by Iran’s Jafar Panahi wins Cannes’ top prize

Wagner Moura won best actor for his role in ‘The Secret Agent’, while best actress went to Nadia Melliti in ‘The Little Sister’.

25 May 2025 - 9:19AM

Pakistan

Pakistan intensifies Balochistan insurgency crackdown after deadly bus bombing

24 May 2025 - 5:00PMvideocam

United States

‘Time to decide’: Iran, US finish latest round of nuclear talks in Rome

24 May 2025 - 6:41AMvideocam

Science

Ohio legislation could force Chinese scientists to sell their homes in the US

Green card holders testify to packed hearing about ‘foreign adversary’ law that would ban them from property near ‘critical’ infrastructure.

23 May 2025 - 12:13PMvideocam

Lawmakers in Ohio are considering a proposed bill that would make nearly all property in the midwestern US state off-limits to immigrants from China. Photo: Shutterstock

United States

Opinion | With his ‘historic’ tour, Trump puts US power back in the Middle East

In reasserting the US in the centre of the Middle East’s strategic calculus, Trump also weakens the leverage and influence of Russia and China.

23 May 2025 - 5:30AM

Britain

UK signs Chagos deal with Mauritius, says China sought its ‘collapse’

Multibillion-dollar agreement for 99 years sees Britain keep control of military base on Diego Garcia jointly run with the US.

23 May 2025 - 1:32PM

Middle East

Syria on the brink? US warns of potential new civil war within weeks

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Syria’s transitional government facing potential collapse, more war, and ‘country splitting up’.

21 May 2025 - 2:34PM

A member of Syria’s security forces near Damascus. Despite the fall of Syria’s Bashar al-Assad, instability persists. Photo: AFP

Asian cinema

Review | It Was Just an Accident: Jafar Panahi’s Palme d’Or-winning dark comedy

Twice imprisoned director imagines a freer Iran, but authoritarianism is never far away in a story about morality, memory and abuse of power.

25 May 2025 - 7:40AMvideocam

Middle East

Opinion | How Gulf states could unlock US investment in Iran after sanctions end

Given their ties with both China and the US, Gulf states could act as economic intermediaries and help normalise US-Iran business relations.

21 May 2025 - 5:08PMvideocam

United States

Letters | US sanctions are losing their power in a post-American world

Readers discuss the challenge facing the Western-led moral order, and the problem of corruption.

17 May 2025 - 2:30PM

Palestinians fleeing Rafah amid Israeli military operations arrive in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip on March 23. Photo: AP

Crime

Man who stabbed Salman Rushdie sentenced to 25 years in prison

Hadi Matar charged on stage and attacked the novelist, partially blinding him, during an event in New York in 2022.

17 May 2025 - 2:11AM

Hadi Matar arrives at Chautauqua County Courthouse in Mayville, New York, for his sentencing on Friday. Photo: AFP

Donald Trump

Trump caps Gulf tour with America-first policy for peace in Middle East

Trump’s vision sits well with the UAE and Saudi Arabia, two Gulf nations closest to Washington, but its feasibility remains to be determined, analysts say.

16 May 2025 - 9:00PMvideocam

Middle East

Trump wraps up his Middle East tour with deals galore

The US president made scoring business deals a centrepiece of the first major foreign trip of his second term.

16 May 2025 - 5:17PM

Middle East

Trump says ‘getting close’ to deal to avoid Iran military action

Iran has held four rounds of talks with the Trump administration, which has sought to avert threatened military action by Israel.

15 May 2025 - 9:54PMvideocam

A newspaper with a cover photo of US President Donald Trump and Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, in Tehran. Photo: via Reuters

Hong Kong politics

Hong Kong vows enforcement of UN Iran sanctions, hits out at US measures

Locally based Super Sources Industrial and owner Wang Chao among list of firms, individuals hit by US sanctions for alleged Iran missile programme support.

15 May 2025 - 8:39PM

A military parade in Tehran in April 2025. Hong Kong-based Super Sources Industrial has been accused of supporting Iran’s missile programme. Photo: AFP

US-China relations

US sanctions Chinese nationals and HK firm for aiding Iran missile programme

The move comes a day after fresh US sanctions on Iranian oil sales to China, under Trump’s ‘maximum pressure’ campaign.

15 May 2025 - 6:53AM

SCMP Highlights

Banks upgrade China GDP forecast, Shenzhen visitor surge: SCMP daily highlights

From investment banks upgrading their growth forecasts to a rise in overseas visitors in Shenzhen, here’s a round-up from today’s coverage.

14 May 2025 - 9:15PM

US-China relations

US sanctions network of companies it says helped ship Iranian oil to China

The US Treasury says nearly two dozen firms facilitated transport of billions of dollars worth of oil for Iranian military front company.

14 May 2025 - 6:38AM

An Iranian oil production platform. The US sanctioned nearly two dozen firms on Tuesday for helping to transport Iranian oil to China. Photo: Reuters

United States

Trump’s Middle East trip raises doubts about Israel’s ‘ironclad’ standing with US

Trump is set to visit Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the UAE, during his trip, but not Israel. Some Israelis are concerned about the state of its relationship with the US.

12 May 2025 - 8:26PM

US-Iran tensions

US and Iran conclude 4th round of nuclear talks in Oman

Both sides will continue talks over the Islamic Republic’s nuclear programme after ‘useful’ round.

12 May 2025 - 12:00PM

Middle East

Iranian nuclear enrichment ‘red line’ for US ahead of new talks

Trump has voiced hope for reaching a deal with Tehran to avert an Israeli strike on Iran’s nuclear programme that could ignite a wider war.

10 May 2025 - 8:28PM

US President Donald Trump congratulates his Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff during Witkoff’s swearing-in ceremony in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington on Tuesday. Photo: EPA-EFE

US-China relations

Republican-backed bill to limit Chinese property ownership gains ground in Texas

Measure also targets nationals from Iran, North Korea and Russia as it gives the state’s governor broad powers to include more countries.

10 May 2025 - 6:12AMvideocam

Texas state lawmakers voted to advance the bill at the capitol building in Austin. Photo: The Dallas Morning News/TNS

India-Pakistan tensions

India-Pakistan conflict: Iran, Saudi officials urge restraint as tensions surge

Visits underscore growing concerns that conflict could spiral out of control, but analysts say more concerted global efforts needed to defuse tensions.

9 May 2025 - 8:48PMvideocam

Pakistan

India, Pakistan exchange gunfire after missile strikes kill dozens

Islamabad said the military had been authorised to ‘respond in self-defence’ at a ‘time, place and manner of its choosing’.

8 May 2025 - 3:46PMvideocam

Middle East

Trump says US to stop Houthi strikes after rebels pledge to end ship attacks

Ceasefire deal between Yemen’s Houthis and the US does not include sparing Israel, the group said.

8 May 2025 - 8:36AM

A US F/A-18 fighter jet takes off from the USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier on March 16. Photo: US Navy via AFP

Middle East

Israel military disables Yemen’s main airport with air strikes

Israeli attack on Sanaa airport was in response to a Houthi missile strike on Israel’s main airport near Tel Aviv.

7 May 2025 - 10:42AM

A burning plane at Sanaa international airport after Israeli warplanes struck Yemen’s rebel-held capital Sanaa. Photo: SABA via AFP

Donald Trump

Trump wants Turkish leader Erdogan’s help to end Ukraine war

The US president has been pushing Kyiv and Moscow to reach a ceasefire deal.

6 May 2025 - 11:02AM

Middle East

Missile from Yemen halts flights in Israel before vote on intensifying Gaza war

Israel’s prime minister vowed a response to Yemen’s Houthis and their Iranian backers for attack on Ben Gurion International Airport.

5 May 2025 - 10:56AM

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